Stealth Possible?

[myke]

Is stealth camping in a truck with cap/camper on back even possible? I'm sure it is to some degree, but I would think full on stealth would be almost impossible...

 

[sisterearth]

Probably depends on where you are parking and that sort of thing. Coming and going without being noticed. Peace!

 

[Reducto]

Can you crawl in via a window in the back of the cab? If so, you aren't that much worse off than in a van. If you have to get in through the back it will be a challenge. The goal isn't complete stealth anyway, that's next to impossible for any of us. Your goal should be to minimize the number of people who notice you and be non-threatening enough to those who do that they don't kick you out.

 

[SoulRaven]

I think if someone saw you crawling through a window into the back it would arouse their suspicions and possibly a call to the police.

 

[akrvbob]

I think he meant a pass-through from the cab to the camper through a sliding window. It can be done but it is very uncomfortable. I have friends who do it but it's for their cat or dog to pass back and forth and to let the cold or heat from the cab into the camper. Works well for that but you've got to be tiny to do it yourself.

I lived in a truck and camper but nearly always lived in the boonies. When I was in town I went for the "just passing through" look and never had a problem. But if you stay in one place for a long time, it could be a problem. It all depends on the local attitude, some places it would be no problem, others they would hound you relentlessly.

It's impossible to generalize so you need to find out the attitude of your area before making a decision.
Bob

 

[highdesertranger]

as far as the pass through, remove the rear window completely and install an accordion boot. this is what I do. highdesertranger

 

[brightbluejim]

I think the smaller your house is, the easier it is not to attract attention.  Most people don't drive around with slide-in campers on their trucks, but LOTS of people have caps on their daily drivers.  So if you're serious about stealth, you can live in a pickup/cap, but it's going to be damned uncomfortable.

I think he meant a pass-through from the cab to the camper through a sliding window. It can be done but it is very uncomfortable.

It's not that uncomfortable.  I did this daily in a pickup/camper, and I'm a 200 lb guy.  The trick was mounting a grab bar (actually just a piece of 2x2) above the opening, inside the camper.  To get to the camper, I squatted on the bench seat facing forward, then leaned back through the opening (i.e., belly-up), grabbed the bar, and pulled myself up to where I was sitting on the "ledge", then swung my legs through.  Easy.  Even easier going from the camper to the cab.

When you go to get into the camper for the night, you can look around to see if anybody's watching first.  When you climb back into the cab in the morning, it doesn't matter if they see you, because you're leaving anyway (unless you're planning on staying multiple nights in the same place).

That was about 25 years ago, my first full-time experience.  The truck wasn't all that stealthy, because even though it wasn't a regular slide-in camper (it was a box I built from plywood and mounted on the truck frame), it did have windows and an entry door in back, so it was obviously usable as a house.  Still, I had NO trouble in the Seattle area.  I was working temp jobs (part of my plan for freedom), and one place I worked for about two months, I parked in their lot every other night, and other places around town on the alternate nights.  I was operating on the "easier to get forgiveness than permission" principle, and it worked in that case, because eventually my boss noticed me walking to that camper-truck after work, and asked me about it.  He didn't have a problem with it, but if he did, I would have just moved it.  And if he had REALLY objected, then I just wouldn't have been working for him any more.  But if I had been working at a full-time job, I probably wouldn't have overnighted at work at all.

I must say, the convenience was an incredible luxury - a 100-foot commute! Even on the "away" nights, I was seldom more than five minutes away. That was about an hour/day time savings.

This time I'll be going a lot more stealthy (I'm moving "out" in three weeks) - no windows, nothing that outwardly looks RV-ish, just an ordinary box truck - but it really is like others keep saying: if you're living in anything big enough to live in with any degree of comfort, you can't really hide that from somebody who knows what to look for.  But you CAN drastically reduce the number of people who even take a second look.

Jim

 

[Simplydavid]

Is stealth camping in a truck with cap/camper on back even possible? I'm sure it is to some degree, but I would think full on stealth would be almost impossible...

It is absolutely possible but the opportunities, in general, are rare. A friend and I were returning from Alaska in my truck camper in September 2013 via the ALCAN highway. I can't remember if we were in the Yukon or northern British Columbia, but late one afternoon we tried two Canadian provincial parks and both were absolutely full. Not wanting to drive in the dark because of the wildlife, my friend checked in the Milepost and saw where there was an abandoned airstrip about 20 km up the road. We found an entrance through an old logging road and parked right in the middle. We were in the middle of nowhere, but with plenty of water, propane and Honda generators, we camped like kings.

 

[Canine]

View attachment 3296Try one of these instead of a truck camper.  Just go onto uhaul or Ryder truck sales and  type in your zip code and 10 foot tuck.  It's a van, single wheel, and either a 3/4 or 1 ton.  Only caveat is that in some or most states a one ton is plated commercial while here in Az a 3/4 doesn't have to be.  Other states every truck is commercial so check your DMV first.  

This one was in Albuquerque, $9,575 with 127,000 miles.  

 

[GotSmart]

Have you tried to hide in plain sight?

 

[Milk Hauler]

try a minivan and creative lettering.